


Harm and Heal

by Nejllik



Category: Akatsuki no Yona | Yona of the Dawn
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-12-05
Updated: 2018-12-05
Packaged: 2019-09-07 14:45:56
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,977
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16855957
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Nejllik/pseuds/Nejllik
Summary: You start as a court lady in training. Life is a rough road to follow but you push on through its twists and turns. As you trip and fall, you stumble upon a peculiar fate.





	Harm and Heal

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Welcome to your life.

Your village was far away from the rest of the Fire Clan that it belonged to. It was a cluster of secluded poor farmers, barely making a living in day to day life. Among the secluded village was your family, secluded from the secluded village. Tucked away between foothill, your house had been overshadowed with great shadows and stillness ever since your birth. You had stayed hidden in your home and rarely wondered to town, preferring the vast and beautiful mountains that lay within your reach. It was a nice quiet life that you had, just your parents and you living together. It all changed when your father passed away; you were fifteen at the time. 

Your mother couldn't handle the grief and spend the rest of her days grieving. You worked every job you could in your village and barely mustered enough to keep your mother and yourself from starving. When you were sixteen, you couldn't find your mother. You looked and looked. At last, when the sun was beginning to set in a blurry grey and blazing red, you found her. She laid by your fathers grave, dead. Your happy little life had come to an end.

In you, you felt a desire to depart from the empty house that held your childhood memories. You began to venture out your village and tried a few interviews here and there. You struck gold in one and was offered a place near the royal palace; you were to be a court lady in training. It seemed like a miracle to have such a chance out of your village, and you took it immediately. Mr. Terrior, an old friend of your parents, moved into your house, to keep it safe and working while you were gone. You took your father's elderly horse and the few personal possessions you had then went on your way to the capital city of the Kouka Kingdom, Kuuto.

The ride was long, but the spring breeze was gentle and soothing. When you arrived at the capital, you were overwhelmed. The city was bustling and busy. People were everywhere, and everybody was in a rush to go somewhere. It would have been impossible for you to find your destination within the maze of the city if your destination didn't rise above the rest with its glory and superiority; the Hiryuu Castle stood gleaming in the evening light.

To clarify, you weren't working at the Hiryuu Castle. That would be insane given your experience with serving so far. Instead, you approached a quiet building that stood just outside of the walls of the castle. It stood on the corner of the street, quiet and curious to you. When you knocked upon the door, it slid open and a young girl with cute cheeks and wide black eyes greeted you. She took your horse away and you were brought in to speak to a older, clearly mature woman. She had sharp yet pretty hazel eyes and glowing brown hair that spilt down her shoulders. She introduced herself as Ms. Lilac and instructed you strictly. You were to quickly settle in at your room, which you shared with several other ladies-in-training. Afterward, you were to come out and begin attending classes, which were held in a building besides the boarding home. You obeyed as soon as she finished instructing. You hurried off to your room, a comfortable place with several floor beds on the floor. You quickly placed away your bag in the shared closet and made your way to the classes.

You had no breaks. The teachers immediately put you to work. Your parents had taught you writing and history, but the new lessons were intense and in-depth. On top of studies there were the more entertaining classes, which just as rigorous. You were taught to dance, to draw, to entertain, to speak, and to preform almost every other task. You were taught the exact behaviors a court lady should have; you were taught to never be anything less. After day one you were beaten mentally and worn out bodily, but it was too late to give up. You fell asleep immediately, a quiet flame within you pushing you on. 

Next day you were up and off to work; keenly you observed and learned everything you could. You messed up a couple times, or rather, a couple dozen times. The teachers were quick to use their rulers and your wrist were red and aching at the end of the day. You worked on and no thoughts of giving up came to your mind. After all, you had no place else to go. 

The weeks went by quickly; each and every one were hard and packed with endless training. You had caught on quickly to their tasks. Now, you were already one of the best ladies of the house. Graceful, beautiful, and intelligent, you shone as a diamond of a woman. Your hard work was beginning to bear fruit when you heard of a shortage of ladies at the royal palace. You had planned to sign up immediately, and as you were making your way to fill out a form, you were approached by Ms. Lilac. She eagerly pressed you to sign up without the knowledge of your current motives and, when you accepted, revealed she had already sent in an application. With piercing eyes, she informed you the place and time to be. She left with a threat; you were not to let down her training facility. Though the lady Ms. Lilac was cruel and strict, and at times very pushy, the excitement and pride in her eyes did not escape your observations. You solemnly swore to yourself not to let her down, not after all this time.

The test was full of every aspect of your training and more, ranging from how you poured tea to your linguistic abilities. You were sent home at the end of the day, tired to the bone. The next morning was quiet; you practiced serving at Ms. Lilac's shop, where you were well-known and well-liked. The day ended and you fell asleep slowly. The morning after, a letter came for you. You rushed to the common rooms and found Ms. Lilac waiting. She neither wore a smile nor a frown, but in her eyes and in her glow you knew what news she had. You packed your dresses and your books and met the servant outside; you were going to Hiyruu castle.

Finally, after months of training, you were able to look inside the large tall walls of the castle. Unsurprisingly, everything was beautiful. Every structure was carefully detailed. Steps were carved, wood was adorned with gold, the walk ways were cleanly marbled. Even the grass seemed to be cut in a specific manner, giving it a soft and shining look. Other female attendants greeted you and you were shown your living quarters. After a quick tour of the building, you were put to work. 

The work was not rigorous; you were simply to serve any royalty or noble who requested service. Still, when you did work, you put your entire self into it. Your first job was to serve at a meeting between two noblemen who were leisurely conversing. You poured tea and sat still, listening quietly while the two men talked. The other court ladies attending acted the same way. Until service or entertainment was required, it was within your assigned jobs to stay out of the way and allow the men to enjoy themselves. 

Listening was an important aspect of the job, and you did so intently. The men talked of recent events. Princess Yona's death had left an unpleasant mark within the castle, but both men agreed that King Soo-won would undoubtedly prove to be satisfactory. Search parties have been sent out for runaway general Hak, but none were of success. The men continued to chat on about more trivial things including their one daily lives: solider behaviors, taxes, and some family issues. At some point the conversation died down, and to keep silence from settling in, one of the men turned towards her. "Dance," He said with a smile. "Bring some music," He called out to the other maids, "I wish for this pretty maiden to entertain my guest and me." 

Quickly the other girls scurried away for instruments while you stood up slowly, letting the thick wrinkles in your dress flatten themselves out. You made your way with deliberate, graceful steps towards the center of the room. Neither music nor dance had started, but your show had begun long ago. In your movements you drew out sweetness, your trained body moving as smoothly as running water. You easily captured both men's attention. When the music began, so did your dance. You seemed to merge with the sounds, pouring emotion into your body. After countless days of training, you had perfected your job. In combined small traits that no one could point out, you entranced the men by your angelic femininity. You were seductive yet pure, kind yet bold, and beautiful beyond any measure. When the music ended and you came to a stop, the two men clapped and smiled, quickly giving you praise. They asked your name, to which you replied appropriately with a polite bow of your head. Your eyes briefly caught sight of the shadow of the halls, where a few had gathered to watch you. The unidentified guests slipped away, and your attention returned back towards your clients. 

Upon seeing your dance your clients had turned their attention to you. You talked with them and indulged in pleasant conversations, briefing over your stature. Upon hearing of your novelty to the castle, the man who was a regular here, Mr. Chung smiled. He happily said he would request your service in the future. The evening was a success with your ability to entice your clients, but their attention was not the only ones that you had gained. The strangers who had watched, drawn by your gracefulness, were doubtfully a risk to your job. If anything, perhaps a noble was watching and would request your service later on. More worryingly were the other ladies. They watched you with envious eyes; they saw how better you preformed their job. You feared what else they might see. Ms. Lilac had warned you in one of your earlier training that the other ladies would not stop to preserve their jobs, and if you were a threat, they would strive to push you away. Ms. Lilac had instructed you to be calm and careful and to focus only on pleasing the men; you intended to follow wholeheartedly. 

When the job was over and the clients had left, the sky was beginning to grow dark. Flames were lit within the halls and a gentle glow filled every room. You took your time bathing, letting the warm water soothe your bones and flesh. You applied every ointment to preserve your skin and beauty, two crucial components in your job. You dressed quickly, dried your hair, combed your hair a multitude of times, and finally headed off to your bed. Not a single other court lady spoke a word to you.

You laid down on your floor bed, your pillow uncomfortably holding up your neck in a manner that would not tangle your hair. You drew the warm covers above you and stared up at the dark, empty ceiling. Days as a court lady were often dull, but the progress of your work was satisfying. The future was uncertain; you aimed to be a wife of a noblemen so that you could live out your days in leisure. Still, you did not know who or when. When your eyes began to grow heavy, you put your thoughts away and closed your eyes. You fell asleep quickly and slept deeply.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *There's not much in my notes, just a bit about me and my adventure with writing these. Really, there's not a lot here.*
> 
> *groans* I'm so sorry for not including Soo-won in the first chapter. I mean, he might have been there, but shhhhhhh it's a secret (not a very important one but eh). I got caught up in exploring our lives as a court lady. I panicked a bit because I thought as a court lady we'd have to sell our sex, but decided that since we're working in Soowon's castle that'll probably be not so common. I do have plans for this story, unlike my others, which I just write and panic on because im a noob. 
> 
> I wrote this fanfiction because I was looking around for Soowon x reader stuff and there is not enough out there. I dug real deep and almost downloaded a virus. After that I decided I was done with looking and was just going to write my own. c:
> 
> I really spent a lot of time talking about us as a character and it makes me a bit nervous because.. this is a soowon x reader fanfiction. o well. i'm young and have plenty of time to learn. maybe i'll just think of this as a story about us.
> 
> It's really late and im tired. I'll think this long ending note is cringey when I wake up tomorrow. 
> 
> I really do hope you enjoyed. 
> 
> Thanks for reading, have a good day.


End file.
